Game Recap: Defense Prevails as Pistons Keep Undefeated Home Record

The Detroit Pistons have defeated the Denver Nuggets 103-86 in convincing fashion, as they focused on putting a stronger emphasis on defense after it showed holes in Wednesday’s loss to Brooklyn.

The Pistons became the first team to outscore Denver and keep them under 25 points in the third quarter this season, as the Nuggets usually dominate after halftime adjustments. Only three Nuggets players – Gallinari, Chandler and Nurkic – reached double digits tonight, while the starting backcourt of Jamal Murray and Emmanuel Mudiay was limited to only 17 points, while also committing 7 turnovers and only dishing out 5 assists.

After a no-show effort against the Nets in their last game, Andre Drummond showed energy from the tip, as he had a fantastic comeback game with 19 points, 20 rebounds, and 3 blocks, the second one being the 500th of his young career. Stanley Johnson came out of his early season sophomore slump, bringing back the swagger and confidence he showed as a rookie, dropping 12 points on efficient 5-7 shooting off the bench. Another bench player, Jon Leuer, had a season high 15 and again led the Pistons second unit in scoring.

The final score really doesn’t give the Pistons defense justice, as Denver accumulated a lot of garbage buckets towards the end of the game. The only Nugget who made a significant impact on efficient numbers was Denver’s sixth man, Wilson Chandler.

Stan Van Gundy must’ve got it through the team’s head that defense wins games, as they made a great effort tonight that’ll hopefully carry into the upcoming road trip. The Pistons take on the Clippers at the Staples Center on Monday.